On this road trip, I was lucky enough to tag along with Lacy Cain from Wildjoy Experiences and her friends as we explored Kingman and Oatman, in addition to hiking the Ringbolt Hot Springs trail the following day! (Blog post for the Ringbolt Hot Springs hike coming soon!)

Kingman and Oatman, Arizona are both historic ghost towns located in northern Arizona, near Nevada off of the famous Route 66. Growing up in New York, I pictured every town in Arizona looking like Oatman since it’s the “Wild West”! Boy was I wrong once I went to Phoenix for the first time!

*all coordinates for these locations will be listed at the bottom*

On the Road to Oatman, Arizona

The drive from Phoenix, Arizona to Oatman took about four hours, but we made little stops along the way so it probably took us closer to five and a half.

Our first stop was at Cracker Barrel to fuel up for the road! A little bit later on, in Wickenburg, we stopped at Tastee Freez, where Lacy claims they have the best dipped cones. I didn’t try one since it was around 11 am and my stomach wouldn’t have handled ice cream that well so early. I’m definitely going to get a dipped cone next time I drive through Wickenburg!

Just after we left Tastee Freez, Joshua Trees started to pop up all along the side of the highway. I’d never seen Joshua Trees before, and I thought they were only at the Joshua Tree National Park so this was super exciting!

The Famous Route 66

Eventually we came upon the famous Route 66 Highway, where the movie Cars takes place. Route 66 extends from Los Angeles to Chicago, and its original purpose was to help people migrate west, especially during the Dust Bowl in the 1930’s. Nowadays, the highway is mainly used as a scenic bypass, and in Arizona you take it to reach famous destinations like the Grand Canyon and the Meteor Crater!

Along Route 66, we stopped at Cool Springs Station for a little pit stop! Cool Springs Station was built in the 1920’s and used to be a bar, cafe, gas station, and even had cabins for people to stay a night or two. Nowadays, Cool Springs Station has been restored as a souvenir shop and is a must see along Route 66!

At Cool Springs Station, we met Hornfeather, who makes his own jewelry out of horns and copper wire. He gave us a free lesson on how to make his rings, which literally took him three minutes to do! He sized up our fingers just by eyeballing them, and created beautiful rings with the stone of our choice. And the rings were only $5! Hornfeather was a very intriguing person to meet, and I highly recommend making a stop here so you can meet him as well. If I remember correctly, he’s been here for at least 7 years, so I can imagine he’ll be here for at least a few more before he finds his next venture.

Oatman, Arizona

After our pitstop at Cool Springs Station, Oatman was just 20 minutes away! The road to Oatman from our pitstop was super narrow and windy so be careful as you’re driving.

Oatman was a small mining camp during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s when two miners struck gold, which was worth over $10 million! This attracted many miners, and Oatman’s population quickly grew. The economic boom of Oatman was short lived, however, when a fire burned down homes and one of the main mining companies. Nowadays, you can visit the ghost town to experience all of its history!

In Oatman, we were greeted by wild donkeys, known as burros, as we walked through town. These burros were left by the minors and now roam freely, and even obey the locals’ commands.

The town of Oatman consists of one major street with a bunch of touristy shops along the way. In Oatman, you can find the famous Oatman Hotel which is haunted by the ghost Oatie, feed the wild burros, walk through an old mine, watch an old western gun show, and throw some axes!

We were planning on attending one of their famous gun shows in the middle of the street, but unfortunately we had the times mixed up. However, I highly recommend planning your day around the gun show because it is a classic western experience!

My favorite activity we did while in Oatman was throwing axes! A man named Joe ran the axe throwing booth, and gave us some great tips on how to get a bullseye. I didn’t quite get a bullseye, but I was able to land an axe on the target twice – which is more than I thought I could do! This was a really fun activity that only costs $5 for 12 throws (if I remember correctly).

After we conquered axe throwing, we got chai tea lattes from the coffee truck right next door! Joe claimed that the lady sells the best chai in the world, and as a chai feen myself I knew I had to try it. And her chai lattes definitely didn’t disappoint! Who knew chai lattes and axe throwing went so well together.

The coffee bar was our last little stop in Oatman before we made our way to Kingman for the night! Overall, Oatman was a cute little ghost town and there are many activities to do while you pass through.

Fish Bowl Spring

As we made our way to Kingman, Arizona, back on Route 66 again, Lacy told us to keep our eyes peeled for stairs carved out of the mountain because it led to a spring with goldfish in it. And long behold, around mile marker 31, we found it! There were even a few wild burros there to greet us!

The Fish Bowl Spring was created by a man named Shaffer during the 1930’s while he was building the “Gold Road Section” that connects the gold mines to Kingman. He saw water spewing down the cliff and decided to build a little barricade to collect the water, and locals took it upon themselves to keep the mini pond full of fish. We saw a few goldfish in there!

As we headed up the stairs to the Fishbowl Springs, one of the burros kept following me and I was afraid to run away in case he started chasing me! I tried walking up the stairs but then he cut in front of me and just blocked me on the stairs so I couldn’t go any further. These burros really have a mind of their own!

The Fish Bowl Spring was a tiny attraction compared to the rest of the day, but it was one of my favorites. I thought it was so cool that there were goldfish just chilling on the side of the road in a small pond in the middle of nowhere! Also, the views from the Fish Bowl Spring are incredible!

Kingman, Arizona

Our final destination of the day was in Kingman, Arizona! Here, we explored the town and stayed at an AirBnB, courtesy of Wildjoy Experiences.

Kingman is another city that was build along Route 66. The city isn’t as lively as it was back in the 1800’s and 1900’s, but it has more of a “lived in city feel” since there are restaurants and you can even stay the night, where as in Oatman, I feel like you could only spend a few hours there.

When we first arrived in Kingman, we checked into our AirBnB, which was a cute little apartment attached to some of the local shops! It had a staircase with license plates on the steps and an adorable turquoise fridge! This was actually my first time staying in an AirBnB so I had a great first impression with the company.

After we settled in, we walked around downtown Kingman to get some dinner! We took pictures in front of the huge Route 66 Mural in the heart of town! This mural is a great representation of how far Route 66 extends, and it shows attractions to stop at along the way in Arizona.

Finally, we grabbed dinner at Floyd and Company Real Pit BBQ. After a long day of exploring, I was so hungry that I ordered two meals! First, I had their Pulled Pork Sammich with a side of coleslaw, and then I had their chicken tenders and fries. Everything came out pretty fast and definitely satisfied my appetite!

That night, Lacy’s sister and husband joined us at the AirBnB and we all hung out and played cards. It was a great way to end our busy day! We stayed in Kingman for one night, and the next morning we made our way near the Hoover Dam to hike the Ringbolt Hot Springs trail. The Ringbolt Hot Springs trail was the main event of this road trip for us, however, the you can definitely make Oatman and Kingman into their own separate trip! Stay tuned for my blog post on the Ringbolt Hot Springs hike! Here are some pictures to hold you over.

Locations and Addresses

Cool Springs Station: 35.027, -114.309

Oatman: 35.027, -114.384

Fishbowl Springs: 35.039, -114.357

Kingman: 35.190, -114.051

Sources

https://www.desertusa.com/oatman/du_oatman.html

https://www.route66coolspringsaz.com

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/shaffer-fish-bowl-spring

Have you visited a ghost town before? What were your thoughts? Let me know in the comments!